The Nakuru Cat Burglar is remarkable for its resemblance to the baboon. (Nakuru, Kenya)

Though I’ve had more tropical diseases than the average petri dish and once had to survive in Iceland for 24 hours without so much as a toothbrush and clean socks, I have been fortunate that I’ve only once had to make a claim on my travel insurance.

Travel insurance is one of those things that I faithfully buy but hope never to get my money’s worth from. Over the years I have probably spent enough money to pay for a pretty decent vacation, but so far apart from one visit to a doctor in London (see “How To Get A Head in Africa” 10 July 2008), I’ve never got back a penny – but I have scored a ton of peace-of-mind.

The silence at the end of the telephone line when I called the insurance company about my tick suggests it might well still be discussed around the water cooler. But I am glad to know that I am not the only one who has entertained or bemused travel insurance companies. Here are a few others that are likely pinned to a bulletin board beside Terry the Tick:

- A pensioner, whose false teeth fell out while he vomited over the side of a cruise ship, put in a claim to his travel insurers for new dentures under “lost baggage”.

- A young traveller, distracted by the appearance of a group of women in bikinis, broke his nose when he walked into a bus shelter in Athens.

- A traveller lost his wallet in a drain in Israel. Instead of filing a police report and making a claim through his insurance, he instead stuck his hand down the drain – only to be stung by a poisonous scorpion. He ended up claiming for both a lost wallet and a hospital visit.

- A man who claimed for holiday cancellation when refused boarding was turned down by his insurance company when it emerged his ticket was for a flight from Manchester, New Hampshire…not from Manchester in the North West of England.

- Returning from India, a traveller filed a claim with his insurance company for $1100 worth of “Bombay Mix” snack food that he had lost from his luggage enroute. The insurance company performed a few quick calculations and determined that at less than $2 per 250g bag, the man would have had to have misplaced more than 137 kilograms of munchies…and refused to pay.

- A couple on vacation in Malaysia returned to their lodge to find that monkeys had climbed in through an open window, stolen their clothes and scattered them throughout the neighbouring jungle.

- A family’s camping holiday was ruined when a parachutist from a nearby airbase missed his target and landed squarely on their tent, destroying their equipment. Their insurer rejected their claims as they weren’t insured against accidental damage.

And in the category of needing a vacation to recover from a vacation:

- A holidaymaker in Sri Lanka needed hospital treatment after a coconut fell on her head while she was reading in the shade below.

Travel Insurance Buying Guide

• Part 1: Need for Travel Insurance
• Part 2: Claims You Can Make
• Part 3: Not Covered
• Part 4: The Eligibility
• Part 5: Compensation and Satisfaction

WHAT kind of losses can you claim from your travel insurance?

The coverage and limitations under the policy vary depending on the insurance company. Here are some of the benefits offered in most travel insurance policies:

Medical Expenses: Falling sick while travelling can be a very scary and expensive experience. In case of accident or illness, hospitalisation, medical and surgical expenses and outpatient medical expenses are payable under this benefit.

Some policies provide a daily allowance up to a certain number of days if you are hospitalised for more than 24 hours.

Personal Accident: Compensation is paid in the event of death and permanent total disablement due to an accident. The compensation is paid based on a scale of benefits.

Emergency Medical Evacuation/Transportation: Medical evacuations and emergency transportation can be very costly but in some cases are unavoidable e.g. when the illness is serious and medical attention is not available in that country. Travel insurers normally tie up with international companies providing these services to provide for evacuation, with medical supervision, to the nearest facilities that is able to provide the proper care for an accident or illness.

Repatriation: In case of death, reimbursement will be made to the legal representative for the cost of transporting the remains home.

Trip Delay: This benefit provides reimbursement for the expenses incurred if flight or voyage is delayed for more than a specified number of hours due to reasons beyond your control.

Trip Cancellation/interruption: Policies generally cover non-refundable payments or deposits if your trip is cancelled or interrupted due to unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances. For example, insurers will rely on warnings issued by the government with regard to travel restrictions due to national safety concerns.

Loss of Luggage & Personal Effects: This benefit covers loss, damage or delay of your baggage, clothing, personal effects and money caused by a carrier.

There are usually limits to the claims payable for such losses and these are always specified in the policy.

Travel Documents: In the event of theft or accidental destruction of your passport and/or travel tickets, you will be reimbursed the replacement cost and the additional accommodation and travel expenses incurred while you are waiting for replacements. You must report the loss to the police within 24 hours.

Hijacking: Although hijackings are not so frequent nowadays due to enhanced security, your insurance will provide for specified daily benefits up to a certain number of days if your travel is disrupted due to a hijacking of your plane.

For queries or complaints on general insurance matters, please send your questions to Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia (PIAM) Complaints Action Bureau at 3rd Floor, Wisma PIAM, 150, Jalan Tun Sambanthan, 50470 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-2274 7395/9, Fax: 03- 2274 5910.

Via NST Travel Online